(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to control systems for the circulation of trains in a railway network, and relates more particularly to a system for the management of a railway network from a central station.
(2) State of the Prior Art
Railway network management systems are known which comprise means of location and of transmission fitted to each train, with a certain number of computers distributed on the ground over the entire network and connected to each other, capable at any time of asking the trains for their position and their speed and of determining the setting of the points placed on the itinerary of the interrogated trains. The data received by the computers constitute a data base supplying a complete and quasi-instantaneous representation of the network and of the trains which are running in the network.
These known systems are, furthermore, provided with data processing means which, on the basis of the collected data, provide regulation of the traffic by intervening in the form of orders given to the drivers of the trains, authorization of instructions or driving advice.
These known systems have the disadvantage of requiring speed data from each train and of using, for the determination of the speed of a train, speed sensors counting the revolutions of wheels. These speed sensors lack accuracy since they give rise to cumulative errors.
Compensating for these errors necessitates the use of electronic beacons disposed approximately every kilometer on the ballast, which increases the cost of the installation.